“Exclusive: Avangrid-Navajo renewables venture could ‘change narrative’ for indigenous lands”, 12 October 2023

The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) is aiming to reverse decades of energy inequity on its lands in the US south-west by cooperating with Iberdrola-subsidiary Avangrid to develop wind and solar energy projects in the region.

The pair signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in April to co-develop renewable projects in the Navajo Nation, a reservation covering 71,000 km2 in New Mexico, Arizona and Utah.

“We're trying to change that narrative whereby the NTUA will be owners of these plants. Every project that we look at, we have to be 51% majority owners of the project. Because we want to exercise our sovereignty and say, you know what, this is our project on our land. We have the right to make decisions, important decisions on these projects. And Avangrid has supported that objective from the Navajo nation’s side,” [Arash Moalemi, deputy general manager at the NTUA] said.

Once wind and solar projects are developed through the joint venture, [it is expected they will] provide funds that can be used to help power communities on the Navajo nation, including those that are without electricity.

He added that this model could help provide an alternative to the prevailing situation in the US where collaborative efforts between energy developers and Native American communities are rare due to a long history of trauma brought by the impact of outsiders on those communities.